Residents say rising transport and living costs have deepened hardship, while Atiku’s proposal faces strong opposition from President Tinubu

Some residents of Jigawa State have backed former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s fuel subsidy proposal, saying the policy could offer relief from rising transport costs and living expenses, following a fresh clash of economic positions between Atiku and President Bola Tinubu in the early stages of the 2027 election campaign.

Also read: Atiku hits back at Tinubu in fresh fuel subsidy clash

The debate intensified in Dutse and other parts of Jigawa on Friday, August 21, 2026, after Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, said he would restore fuel subsidy if elected, while President Tinubu dismissed the proposal as evidence of what he described as a lack of understanding of governance and economics.

Atiku made the pledge during his first media interaction after the Independent National Electoral Commission lifted the ban on campaigns for the 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections.

“I will restore fuel subsidy because the current removal has failed the masses. You cannot punish the poor in the name of reform. Subsidy is for the people, not for the elite,” Atiku said.

Tinubu responded on Thursday, describing the proposal as a serious misunderstanding of economic management.

“I saw one of my opponents say he will bring back the fuel subsidy. That is a serious display of ignorance about governance and economics,” the President said.

In Jigawa, however, some residents said their daily experience with transport, food and energy costs had shaped their response to the debate.

Malam Musa, a 52-year-old commercial driver at Dutse Central Motor Park, said Atiku’s position reflected the frustration of people struggling with higher fuel prices.

“Before subsidy removal, we were managing. Now we are suffering. Atiku has spoken the truth that every poor man feels. Fuel was N195, now it is over N1,300. How can we survive?” Musa said.

Harira Danladi, a foodstuff seller at Dutse Central Market, said higher living costs had weakened consumer purchasing power and affected her business.

“They told us subsidy removal will bring development, but we only see suffering. The masses are paying the price while the big men enjoy. I support Atiku 100 percent to bring it back,” she said.

For Usman Shehu, a 29-year-old youth leader in Takur Quarters, the debate is closely connected to the wider cost of living crisis.

“Fuel is life in Nigeria. When you touch fuel, you touch everything. Atiku wants to touch the lives of the masses positively by bringing subsidy back,” Shehu said.

Another resident, Malam Ibrahim Maibargo, a civil servant, said the government’s insistence on maintaining the subsidy reform had done little to ease the pressure faced by workers.

“Tinubu says no going back, but we the masses are saying there is no going forward with this hardship. Salary remains the same but fuel has killed everything,” Maibargo said.

Mrs Grace John, a hairdresser along Government House Road, said small businesses were also feeling the effect of higher petrol prices.

“As a woman doing small business, I spend almost all my profit on transport and petrol for my generator. If Atiku returns subsidy, our businesses will breathe again,” she said.

The reactions reflect a broader political and economic argument that has followed the removal of the petrol subsidy.

The Tinubu administration has defended the reform as necessary to eliminate the financial burden of subsidising fuel and redirect public resources towards development.

Critics, however, have continued to argue that the immediate consequences, particularly higher transport and food costs, have placed a disproportionate burden on households and small businesses.

Atiku’s proposal therefore places the subsidy debate back at the centre of the 2027 political contest, with supporters presenting restoration as a measure to cushion hardship and opponents questioning its fiscal sustainability.

The Jigawa residents who spoke in support of the proposal said the impact of fuel prices extended well beyond filling stations, affecting transportation, food distribution, household expenses and the cost of running small businesses.

A Jigawa-based public affairs commentator, Comrade Dahiru Sulaiman, described Atiku’s position as timely, although he acknowledged that implementation would determine whether the proposal could deliver meaningful relief.

“Atiku is correct. What Tinubu called reform is actually deformation of the economy. You cannot remove subsidy without functional refineries, without wage increase to world standard and without safety nets,” Sulaiman said.

He added, “The reality of the masses today is hunger, anger and hopelessness. The country is bleeding. Restoring subsidy is not weakness, it is wisdom.”

Sulaiman argued that the removal of subsidy should have been accompanied by stronger social protection, improved domestic refining capacity and measures to protect household incomes.

However, the claim that restoring subsidy would be the only practical solution remains a political position rather than an established economic conclusion.

Any attempt to reintroduce the policy would have to address the substantial fiscal cost that previously accompanied petrol subsidies, as well as questions around transparency, pricing and the sustainability of government expenditure.

The renewed argument is likely to remain prominent as the 2027 campaign gathers momentum, particularly in communities where transport costs and household purchasing power have become defining economic concerns.

For residents such as Musa, Danladi, Shehu and John, however, the debate is less abstract.

Also read: Tinubu slams Atiku over fuel subsidy plan

Their support for Atiku’s fuel subsidy promise is rooted in the immediate pressures of getting to work, moving goods, running businesses and meeting everyday household expenses.